From AI to Advocacy: Mike Twining’s Blueprint for Ag Retail Success

As the ag retail industry navigates tightening margins, rapid technological advancement, and increasing public scrutiny, communication may be emerging as one of the sector’s most important competitive advantages.

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That was one of the key themes shared by Mike Twining, Vice President of Innovation for Willard Agri-Service, during a recent appearance on CropLife Retail Week. Twining will continue the conversation this summer during a Fireside Chat session at Tech Hub LIVE, taking place July 20-22 in Des Moines, IA.

During the Retail Week discussion, Twining offered a candid assessment of the current ag retail environment — one defined by both significant pressure and significant opportunity.

“There’s a story about a hound dog laying on a nail,” Twining said. “Somebody asks why the dog doesn’t move, and the answer is, ‘It doesn’t hurt bad enough yet.’ I think that’s a great story for where we are in 2026.”

According to Twining, many ag retailers are confronting difficult market realities, from grower profitability concerns to shifting technology expectations. Yet he believes those same pressures are creating opportunities for retailers willing to adapt.

“Retailers that are focused on grower profitability and doing things that will help growers succeed are going to do just fine in this market,” he said. “But we’re all laying on our own proverbial nails, and we may have to get off some nails we’ve tolerated in the past.”

Moving Beyond Bullet Points

One area where Twining believes ag retail must evolve quickly is communication — both internally and externally.

“We’re a very science-driven group,” he said. “We think in terms of data, logic, and transactional language. But if we stick with the safe stuff of PowerPoints and working-memory messages, we’re going to lose the engagement battle.”

Twining argued that storytelling has become increasingly critical in a world overloaded with information. Drawing on concepts shared by retired Green Beret Lt. Col. Scott Mann at the Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA) Conference, Twining emphasized the importance of communicating in ways people remember.

“The world needs storytellers right now,” he said, referencing Mann’s recent book The Generosity of Scars.

For ag retailers, that means moving beyond technical explanations and focusing on relatable, authentic conversations with customers, communities, and policymakers.

“So many people who don’t understand agriculture aren’t bad people,” Twining said. “They’re uninformed and drawing the wrong conclusion because they have incomplete information.”

That communication challenge exists at both the local and national level. Twining pointed to outreach efforts with schools and local communities as critical opportunities to shape public understanding of agriculture early.

“It’s so important that we take time to invite kids into our businesses and onto growers’ farms,” he said.

At the national level, Twining encouraged retailers to become more engaged with industry organizations such as ARA.

“There’s an expression: ‘If you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu,’” he said. “When you join ARA, you’re not just getting a seat at the table. You’re joining a leadership group that will help shape the future of this industry.”

AI’s Role in Ag Retail

Twining also discussed the growing role of artificial intelligence within ag retail operations. While AI is already helping companies improve efficiency, he believes its greatest value may be surprisingly human.

“One way AI is improving communication is, ironically, by giving us more time for human interaction,” he said.

At Willard Agri-Service, Twining said employees are already using AI to streamline tasks such as research, spreadsheets, and email drafting, allowing team members to spend more time with customers and communities.

Still, he cautioned against overreliance on AI-generated content.

“I don’t want AI to create our ideas,” he said. “But after we create them, AI can help critique them, sharpen them, and help us communicate more effectively.”

Twining believes ag retail is still in the early stages of AI adoption, but the pace of change is accelerating rapidly.

“The speed of this technology change is almost staggering,” he said. “We’re just scratching the surface.”

Importantly, Twining does not see AI replacing jobs within ag retail. Instead, he believes the greater risk comes from competitors adopting the technology more effectively.

“I don’t think AI is going to take our jobs,” he said. “What will take our jobs is competitors who leverage that technology better within their businesses.”

The Next Wave of Innovation

Beyond AI, Twining sees several broader shifts reshaping the future of ag retail, including increasing interest in biologicals, soil health, and regionalized supply chains.

“When people hear ‘technology,’ they often only think digital,” he said. “But technology is much broader than that.”

Twining compared today’s biological and soil health movement to previous transformational moments in agriculture, such as the introduction of genetically modified crops in the 1990s.

“All of a sudden, we have technology telling us how these biological systems are actually working in ways we never understood before,” he said. “That’s going to challenge us to think differently about how we grow crops and what technologies we employ moving forward.”

For retailers, Twining believes the key will be balancing innovation with practical value creation for growers.

“Every business should be wrestling with these larger shifts and asking what technologies will truly help customers succeed,” he said.

Twining will continue exploring many of these themes during his upcoming Fireside Chat session at Tech Hub LIVE this July in Des Moines.

To hear the full conversation with Mike Twining, watch the complete episode of CropLife Retail Week.